Exterior Architectural Products

Changing Home's Identity with Exterior Architectural Products

When decorating a home, many people think only of the inside. As if there is nothing more that can be done to the exterior than paint. Au contraire! The exterior is just as important (some say it's even more important) than the interior, and there are so many choices in changing your home's face available these days. It doesn't matter what style the exterior of your home is – you can make a big difference in your home's curb appeal by adding a few
exterior architectural products.

Enhancing the outside of your home doesn't have to be fancy or "over the top" if you don't want it to. And, it never has to be difficult. The simple act of adding some shutters on the windows can give your house a down-home flavor or make it feel like an island hideaway. Cover up the vents on your gables with stylish louvers. Don't have a vent to replace with louvers, but still love the style? Not to worry – you can fake it just as easily. How about installing a
exterior trim around the front door or windows? These small touches will do wonders for a house that looks a little plain on the outside. Your neighbors will be trying to figure out just what changed about your home – and only you will know!

If you think your home's façade needs just a touch of style, exterior architectural products, such as exterior molding, crossheads or pediments over the entrance will add a hint of grace and elegance. If you'd like to give your home a touch of gentility, the application of Victorian trim on the gables will have you thinking about starting a 4:00 tea time tradition! Replacing the railing on your front porch or gazebo with a more decorative balustrade system can have a bigger impact than changing the color of your home. It also lends a feeling of refinement and rich style.

For those of you who want to completely redefine the style of your home's exterior, it's easier than ever. Pilasters and columns can completely transform the façade of your home. Give your home the flair of Greek Revival, noble Georgian or romantic Italian with pilasters spaced evenly across the façade, on either side of your front door or on the corners of your home. Non-structural columns can replace or augment a plain railing on a front porch, as long as the structural components are still in place. Make your home look like a Roman villa and have a staycation!

When it comes to exterior architectural products, let your imagination be your guide. From basic and barely noticeable to bold and daring, these simple, yet elegant components
can give your home an entirely new personality!

Exterior Trim

Exterior trim-work defines style. In many cases, the type of trim-work used depends on the style of the house.

Exterior trim is not purely ornamental. In fact, it is rarely just ornamental, and when it functions as ornament, it is often as an after thought. Its primary purposes are to create transitions between fields of siding and to seal vulnerable areas of the house against harmful weathering. In terms of pure design, trim derives its importance from its prominence. Because siding is almost always repetitive, it tends to be monotonous. Anything that breaks up this monotony, as trimwork does, necessarily catches the eye.

Exterior trim also plays a big role in visually outlining a house, the way simple lines define a rectangle. Corner boards form hard verticals, fascias are strong horizontals, and rake boards hold the roof to the end walls so it won't fly away. Knowing something about trimwork can be edifying in itself, particularly if you are interested in house design. But it becomes more actionable, as they say, when you want to buy a new house or you're planning a substantial addition to your current house. Because
exterior trim is so important to the final look of a building, you'll want to be confidently
involved in specifying the proper details. At the end of the day, the architect, builder, and contractors go home. Make sure what they leave
behind is what you want.

adding romance with Victorian trim
The Victorian era seems to consistently conjure up images of romance and a time when things were simple and less rushed. Of sunny days and warm, sweet nights sitting outside on the veranda drinking iced tea – or maybe a mint julep. You can have that wonderful feeling all the time with
Victorian trim on the exterior of your home...continue
reading on Victorian trim
>>

Functional Ventilation Louvers and Roof-Venting Trim
A roof has to breath, which means that it has to allow air to pass through
the attic and under the roof sheathing to keep the sheathing and the framing
members from rotting. Without this air movement, condensation alone could cause
serious damage. In the old days, house construction was much looser than it is
today... functional louvers
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Victorian Home Styles
There were multiple Victorian styles that spread across the United States from the middle of the nineteenth century to the middle of the twentieth. Most of these styles borrowed heavily from one another, and many houses that we call Victorian today are really a combination of a number of
specific house designs....read on Victorian home styles >>

Adding finishing touch with crossheads
Your front door and windows are the first things that guests and visitors to your home will notice. Make sure that they reflect the beauty and grace of your home while expressing your personal sense of style...
read on crossheads
>>

Transforming entryway with entrance pediments
Since your front entryway is the first impression guests and visitors will form
of your home, it makes good sense to give some thought to how you can create a
welcoming feeling while expressing your personal sense of style. Adding an
entrance pediment could hardly be simpler, and you'll be happy to know that
there are all sorts of styles and sizes of pediments from which you can
choose... read on exterior pediments
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Lending support to exterior design with exterior brackets
When considering updating a home’s exterior, most folks think of painting, siding, trim or gutters. These are all fine and good, but if you’re looking for that little bit of extra pizzazz to your home’s curb appeal, you may want to consider exterior brackets.
Brackets don’t have to be structural, no matter where you see them. Often, they’re not functional at all, but are merely architectural details made to look like a part of a structure. Sometimes, these little details go completely unnoticed until someone points them out; other times, you can’t help but see the rich detail that exterior brackets add
to a home... read more exterior brackets
>>

What a heavenly place to be!
I love porches. Big porches, small porches, wrap around porches...
I can spend hours sitting there, reading a book with my cup of tea, glancing off from time to time and deeply breathing in the air of the season. A Porch is a sheltered place to observe the world around you, just like a lodge box in the opera theater, just as life happens as your own play.